Reply To: Achdus, Chareidim and Internet

Some have proposed to make a special domain suffix for inappropriate sites. I think that is a very good idea. Then one can request from his ISP not to carry that domain, and would solve a major part of the problem. This would avoid filters which are annoying and cumbersome and don’t make good decisions, often.

It would have to be a law that all these sites must use that suffix. However, some have argued that this would double the amount of inappropriate sites, since they would now have the new domains, plus their old ones. This argument is so ridiculous, as the law would require them not to use .com or .org, etc. any more. Yet people cloaking themsleves in self-righteousness, are actually trying to undermine the law and further the problem, but don’t want to appear to be doing that.

The other problem which is harder to solve is that many sites such as Rock Music sites or various Youtube videos are inappropriate for Jewish kids, even though some Youtube videos are fine and even frum. Nobody can possibly evaluate them all, so one either ends up letting them all through or blocking them all. Neither is a good solution. However, the first issue seems so clear-cut and easily solved with a law about domains. Rating systems worked for many years in movie theaters, and I don’t understand why they can’t be applied here.